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LAPD tells Public Safety Committee its robot dog was used in four 2024–25 deployments; committee notes report
Summary
At a Jan. 28 Public Safety Committee meeting, Deputy Chief David Kowalski summarized four deployments of the LAPD’s quadruped unmanned ground vehicle during FY 2024–25; the committee voted 4–0 to note and file the Board of Police Commissioners’ inspection report.
Deputy Chief David Kowalski told the Los Angeles Public Safety Committee on Jan. 28 that the department deployed its quadruped unmanned ground vehicle (QUGV) in four incidents during the inspection period covering July 4, 2024, through June 30, 2025, and that each deployment met the department’s deployment criteria dated May 30, 2023.
Kowalski described varied outcomes across the four deployments. In one case the QUGV opened a door and allowed officers to take a suspect into custody without additional force. In a second, Hollywood-area officers used the QUGV’s thermal camera to locate a person armed with an ax inside a multi-level building and later effect custody. In a harbor-area incident the device fell into a ditch and could not traverse the terrain, though its camera still provided situational awareness in what was later associated with an officer-involved shooting. In a fourth deployment in the 77th Area (6600 block of South Figueroa) the device helped officers move obstructions, clear a pathway through an apartment floor and assisted in an arrest of a rifle-armed, barricaded suspect.
Kowalski said the QUGV deployments were limited — “we had 4 incidents where the quadruped unmanned ground vehicle was deployed” — and framed the tool as a tactical option for situations where other robots or drones could not operate (closed doors, cluttered interiors, difficult terrain). He also said the department has coordinated with the manufacturer, Boston Dynamics, and other agencies to review best practices.
Committee members questioned outcomes and noted both successes and limits during the discussion. The chair recommended noting and filing the Board of Police Commissioners’ QUGV inspection report; the committee voted 4–0 to note and file item 11 (Councilmember Price absent).
The action concludes the committee’s formal review; staff did not propose additional restrictions or a change in policy during the meeting, and the report will be retained in the committee record.
